Mercari, Inc. () is a Japanese e-commerce company founded in 2013, with offices in the United States. Their main product, the Mercari marketplace app, was first launched in Japan in July 2013, and has since grown to become Japan's largest community-powered marketplace with over JPY 10 billion in transactions carried out on the platform each month.
Among those Japanese users utilizing one of the country's many community marketplace apps, 94% were found to be using Mercari.
Mercari expanded to the United States in 2014 and the United Kingdom in 2016.
The Mercari app has been downloaded over 100 million times worldwide () and the company is the first in Japan to reach
unicorn
The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead.
In European literature and art, the unicorn has for the last thousand years o ...
status.
History
![Mercari logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Mercari_logo.svg)
Kouzoh, Inc. (currently Mercari, Inc.) was founded by
Shintaro Yamada
born July 10, 1986, in Onna, Okinawa, is a Japanese fashion model, actor, and singer. He is the younger brother of Yu Yamada. His modeling credits include appearing in ''Men's Non-No'' and ''Popeye''. He is the leader of the ''Quiz! Hexagon I ...
, a Japanese serial entrepreneur in February 2013, and the Mercari app was launched for iOS and Android devices in July of that same year. Within a year of its release, Mercari had accumulated over one million individual listings on its platform.
The USD 75 million raised in Mercari's Series D round was set aside by the company for the purpose of further expansion in the US and UK, according to Chief Financial Officer Kei Nagasawa in a March 2016 interview.
In 2014, the company opened an office in San Francisco in preparation for the launch of its app in the United States, which took place in September of that same year. In the six years since its initial launch in the US, the Mercari app has been downloaded over 40 million times and has risen as high as number 3 on the US App Store rankings. There are currently around 100 employees located between Mercari's Palo Alto and Portland offices.
It was announced In June 2017 that John Lagerling had joined Mercari from
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
's management team and would be assuming the title of Chief Business Officer.
He has also since been named the US CEO of Mercari, Inc.
In January 2016, Mercari opened their first European office in London.
In December 2018, Mercari announced it will dissolve the European branch as a "temporary retreat".
Products and services
Mercari's main product is the Mercari marketplace app, which allows users to buy and sell items quickly from their smartphones. In Japan, the app is known for its ease of use and unique shipping system, which allows users to ship items anonymously from local convenience stores through agreements with
Yamato Transport
is one of Japan's largest door-to-door delivery service companies, with a market share of 41%, competing closely with Sagawa Express and Nippon Express. Their head office is in Ginza, Tokyo. The company's trademarked term for their express d ...
and
Japan Post
was a Japanese statutory corporation that existed from 2003 to 2007, offering postal and package delivery services, Retail banking, banking services, and life insurance. It's the nation's largest employer, with over 400,000 employees, and run ...
. In the United States, Mercari collaborates with
USPS
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U. ...
,
UPS
UPS or ups may refer to:
Companies and organizations
* United Parcel Service, an American shipping company
** The UPS Store, UPS subsidiary
** UPS Airlines, UPS subsidiary
* Underground Press Syndicate, later ''Alternative Press Syndicate'' or ...
and
FedEx
FedEx Corporation, formerly Federal Express Corporation and later FDX Corporation, is an American multinational conglomerate holding company focused on transportation, e-commerce and business services based in Memphis, Tennessee. The name "Fe ...
to let users print shipping labels, in addition to allowing sellers to use a separately purchased label for larger items.
Mercari shares its Tokyo offices with its wholly owned subsidiary Souzoh, Inc., which operates several other
consumer-to-consumer
Customer to customer (C2C or consumer to consumer) markets provide a way to allow customers to interact with each other. Traditional markets require business to customer relationships, in which a customer goes to the business in order to purchas ...
(C2C) applications in Japan.
Awards
* Awarded "Best Shopping App" by
Google Play
Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android (operating sys ...
in 2013
* Awarded "Best App" by Google Play in 2014 and 2015
* Awarded "Best Local App" by Google Play in 2016
* Awarded "
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
Japan’s Startup of the Year" in 2014, 2015, and 2016 (inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017)
* Awarded "Special Jury Award (Global Expansion)" by the
Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) at the Second Nippon Venture Awards (part of the Prime Minister's Awards) in 2016
* Awarded the "Emerging Leader Award" at the 2016 Japan-US Innovation Awards Symposium
* Awarded "Best Commercial" for "The Bride" at the LA Film Awards 2017
See also
*
Craigslist
Craigslist (stylized as craigslist) is an American classified advertisements website with sections devoted to jobs, housing, for sale, items wanted, services, community service, Gig worker, gigs, résumés, and discussion forums.
Craig Newmark ...
*
eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became a ...
*
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook is a social-network service website launched on February 4, 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg. The following is a list of software and technology features that can be found on the Facebook website and mobile app and are available to users of ...
*
OfferUp
OfferUp is an online mobile-first C2C marketplace with an emphasis on in-person transactions. It was founded as a competitor to Craigslist, differentiating itself with mobile-friendly apps and user profiles with ratings.
History
OfferUp was crea ...
References
{{Authority control
Comparison shopping websites
Retail companies established in 2013
Internet properties established in 2013
Online marketplaces of Japan
Online marketplaces of the United States
2013 establishments in Japan
Internet technology companies of Japan